Zero and Iris
by ClockworkJB
Summary: A Most Excellent and Lamentable Mega Man Tragedy. The events of Mega Man X4, reinvisioned after the events of one of the greatest tales of love, drama adventure and tragedy.
1. Prologue

Prologue

Two forces, both alike in honour and distinction, the Maverick Hunters and Repliforce, both, created to protect the innocent from the rampant Mavericks, who plague the Earth. Yet when disaster strikes the floating city of Sky Lagoon, the blame is laid at the feet of Repliforce, who, blinded by pride, refused to lay down their arms. The fugitives flee the city, opting to create their own reploid utopia. But the Maverick Hunters, rash and quick with retribution, label Repliforce as Mavericks. Yet from amidst these two bitter foes, who are now stained with the blood of each other, arises a pair of star-crossed lovers, who with death and defeat end the conflict.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Sky Lagoon

X raced through the glass corridors of Sky Lagoon, The setting sun making his blue armour look a dull purple. He noted the chaos visible in the main plaza below. Rouge Mechaniloids by their thousands, rampaging and destroying, they're normally peaceful appendages converted to weapons of terror. _Somewhere nearby there's a Maverick controlling all of this,_ thought X, _and I'm going to find them_. It was then that he spotted it, a mechanical drake of gargantuan proportions hovering over the main parapet.

"Alia!" cried X, "Alia, do you copy?"

"I see it X," replied the voice of Alia, "It looks like a Wing Dragon Mark V. Be careful X. The claws on that thing are designed to rip through armoured skyships.""Don't worry Alia, It'll have to hit me first."

Raising his buster, X blasted a hole through the glass wall, before leaping through. The grassy plaza loomed over 10 stories below him, but vertigo wasn't something he had felt in a long time. The Dragon turned. _Shit_. He hadn't counted on the Dragon seeing him until he was on the platform. Drawing energy into his buster, X unleashed a powerful blast. A massive burst of blue plasma streaked through the air, impacting upon the face of the Dragon. It shrieked in agony, clawing at the burns on its face, giving X enough time to land on the concrete parapet with a heavy thud. He looked around, just in time to see a clawed hand twice his own size, sweeping towards him. He dashed left, charging his buster.

"X, this is probably not the best time, but I've detected an energy surge in the main core," said Alia, "You've got about 3 minutes before it explodes."

"What?!" exclaimed X.

"I suggest you get there, _fast_. If Sky Lagoon crashes into the city…"

"Roger, heading there now."

Ignoring the Dragon, X fired at the blast gate ahead of him, shattering it and the one behind it with his charged burst. The Dragon took another swipe, but X leapt out of the way, hitting the ground running, preparing another shot for the gate ahead. Letting out an earsplitting roar, the Dragon flapped its wings, blasting through the air in pursuit. X kicked in the Emergency Acceleration System, dashing through gate after gate, until he came to the primary power building. X blasted at the door, but to no avail, his shots bouncing off the reinforced alloy. The huge shape of the dragon loomed closer behind him. He dashed to the door control, slamming it with his fist. _Unauthorized access not allowed during lockdown._

"Ungh," grunted X as he was slammed against the wall by the Dragon's massive claws. His armour took the brunt of the damage, but that didn't stop

"Alia!"

"Working on it X, gimme about 30 seconds."

_Great_, thought X, checking his internal clock. After the door was opened, there would only be about 40 seconds left. _I have to waste 30 seconds with this bozo_. The Dragon roared once more, pounding its chest in challenge.

"You wanna play big guy?" asked X, "Then take THIS!" He fired a volley of shots, but this time the Dragon was quicker, dodging to the left. _It learns quickly_, thought X, _I'll have to end this fast, or lots of people will be hurt_. The Dragon swooped overhead, its claw held back, ready to strike. X dodged left, only to be met with the Dragon's spiked tail. _Damn it! I have to end this quickly._ The Dragon gave X no respite, sending him flying back into the wall.

"Hang in there" cried Alia, "Just a few more seconds!"

X knelt against the wall, clutching his buster arm. His energy was low. Another blow like that and he would be destroyed. _I can't be defeated, not yet_. He cleared his mind, focusing on drawing in energy. More and more he drew in, until a bright aura glowed around him. At the edge of his consciousness, he felt another presence, telling him something. _X, no! You weren't designed to handle such power!_ X ignored it, raising twin busters at the Dragon, drawing in even more energy, until the Dragon had to shield its eyes from the brilliance. The light enveloped all, accompanied by a deafening roar.

"X!!!!!!!!" cried Alia.

The smoke cleared. X knelt on the ground, the ground smoking where his hands lay on it. The outer casing on his arms had almost completely deteriorated, leaving only the dull metallic inner shell. The Dragon was nowhere to be seen. What have I created? What have I set loose upon mankind? said the voice as it faded from perception.

"X, are you alright?" asked Alia, her tone betraying a slight fear.

"I...I'm fine," replied X shakily, rising to his feet.

"W-What was...never mind that, the core X! You have to get there, now"

"Right."

The door to the primary power building was open. X raced through, ignoring the searing pain in his arms. As he got deeper into the facility, the floor started to shake, fire bursting through the walls and the ceiling. _Not much time left_. Finally, he came to the core, a huge metallic pylon, at the centre of which was the pulsing energy mass that kept Sky Lagoon floating above the city. It sputtered and fluxed, sending scalding plasma in all directions. And beside it stood-

"Magma Dragoon!" exclaimed X, "What are you doing here. I thought the 14th were stationed on the surface."

Standing far taller than X, Magma Dragoon was a powerfully built fighting reploid of the 14th Melee Unit.

"When I heard about the reactor…" Magma Dragoon said, looking up at the swirling plasma vortex, "At any rate, it's too late. Get out of here X, there's nothing more we can do here."

With that, he teleported away, leaving X to stare at the chaos. _Damnit__, he's right. But I swear__ the Maverick behind this'll pay._


End file.
